


My Heart's Like An Open Book, But The Only Thing In It Is Your Name

by orphan_account



Series: The Return to Maria's Army [1]
Category: Twilight Series - Stephenie Meyer
Genre: Alice Cullen Bashing, Nostalgia, alice bashing (kind of), description of violence, not graphic i think but it's there.
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-05-19
Updated: 2020-05-19
Packaged: 2021-03-03 02:21:33
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,599
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/24267361
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/orphan_account/pseuds/orphan_account
Summary: THIS is dedicated to my lovely friend, @su-angelvicioso on tumblr!
Relationships: Jasper Hale/Maria, Jasper/Maria, jasria
Series: The Return to Maria's Army [1]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1755535
Kudos: 10





	My Heart's Like An Open Book, But The Only Thing In It Is Your Name

**Author's Note:**

> THIS is dedicated to my lovely friend, @su-angelvicioso on tumblr!

Jasper ran through the woods. He's had _enough_. It's f.ucking shit, the way Alice and Edward act. The way he's a _liability_ at best. The way Carlisle and Esme go along with them without so much as a breath in protest. He's a person, for f.uck's sake! He _knows_ what he's doing.

He ran as fast as he could, feeling the wind whipping against his face. This is the only time he truly felt like himself. The only time he truly felt free. He _hated_ the way they always had to keep up appearances - there's only so many times a person can go through high school and remain sane. He was pretty sure that he'd crossed that limit - after all, fratricidal thoughts were hardly normal. Then again, the coven never truly felt like family - it certainly wasn't by blood,and chosen family doesn't treat you as an inconvenience.

He stopped running - his muscles were burning, his eyes were slightly unfocused, and his step was getting careless. He slowed down to a stroll, stopping at a cliff, dangling his legs above the chasm. He remembered someone who _did_ treat him like true family - someone who valued everything about him. Of course, he couldn't bring her up around Edward or Alice, they'd launch into a lecture about something or the other. Jasper didn't know why he bothered listening, anyhow.

Sighing for what felt like the hundredth time that day alone, he let his emotions take control of his thoughts. He kicked the cliff, watching the rocks fall off.

*

They were lying in the meadow, the sun reflecting off their skin. It was the first day in a long time they didn't have a battle going on, and they were going to make use of it. It had been weeks since they were able to relax, and there was no way he or Maria were going to let this opportunity pass. Their hair was damp; Jasper had had the bright idea of pushing Maria into the water of the clear, blue lake. She'd let out a shriek, gripping onto his arm as she fell, dragging him down as well.

" _You ass!_ " She had half-yelled, laughing as her hair stuck to her head, mud caking her and making her look like some sort of swamp monster, especially with the expression she had on her face. Jasper laughed at her reaction, propping himself up on his elbows as he tried to get up, only to be pushed down into the mud again.

"That's called payback, idiot!"

Jasper feigned surprise; gasping loudly as he felt mud cake his face as well."You evil woman! You know how long I spend on my luscious locks!"

Maria had laughed hysterically, Rubbing more mud into his hair before washing it off her face and getting up. "That's why it's _perfect_ revenge."  


A mere hour later, they'd exhausted themselves - living in a war zone, constantly at war with rivals forces you to hide your emotions. For an empath, it's more difficult to do. However, silent days like this, rare as they were, offered the perfect opportunity to feel everything, then let go. It was overwhelming. More so than every other day.  


He lay back down in the meadow, noticing Maria had closed her eyes and was feeling the sun beat down on her. He smiled; days like this, with a person he trusted with his life, made it all worth it.  


*  


He smiled - he missed her. There were days he couldn't handle it anymore, there were days he couldn't continue to hide himself for the sake of someone else's image. Yes, Alice was his mate - he felt that in his bones. But the truth was, he never believed they were right. Maybe, if she'd changed up her... Well... Personality, he could _perhaps_ learn to not get annoyed. The mating bond, he felt, was never as strong as it was made out to be. Of course, when the two had a genuine connection, it could definitely grow into that. But without that... It was a benign connection, at best.  


The day he'd met Alice, he'd felt hope radiating off her - a welcome change from the environment in the South. Not that it was anyone's fault, just that there isn't much hope in a war zone. The hope was refreshing. Something to like about her. However, it soon became redundant. More of something he was forced to be around, something that stopped him from talking about how he really felt. It had become weaponized against him.  


He'd tried his level best to not compare the girl claiming to be the love of his life to his best friend. He really tried. And he failed spectacularly.  


*  


Maria was exhausted, angry, and sad, all at once. She'd been like that since she got up - Jasper had no idea what was happening. He'd tried everything to make the day better, but nothing had worked so far. He'd just about given up...  


That was, until he heard Maria crying. This was a shock to him - normally, when she felt this way, she'd run into the woods, break rocks, wreck trees, till she'd gotten it out of her system. He walked towards her, sitting silently next to her as she near bawled her eyes out. He didn't say anything - was there _anything_ he could say to make her feel marginally better? He doubted it. Naturally, he just sat there, silently sending her a signal that he was there for her. No matter what.  


He sat there, under the oak tree with Maria for almost an hour, before she moved closer to him, wrapping her arms around him and looking for some form of comfort in her friend. He wrapped her up in his arms, holding her as she cried.  


"It's the anniversary of the day my coven was killed. Right in front of me." Maria was shaking, burying her face in Jasper's shoulder. "I watched it all, Jasper. I saw each of their heads getting ripped off. I saw their limbs being burnt. And I couldn't do _anything._ "  


He held her in his arms, slowly rubbing her back and swaying slightly. "That must have been awful..." He said, trailing off. Maria had started to cry again, holding onto him as tight as she could.  


"I thought that if I never talked about it, or acknowledged it happening, I could forget. But that's the thing, Jasper. I can't forget. It's eating away at me every damn day. I wish I'd been able to do something at the very least! All I managed to do was get out of the constraints and run before they could rip my limbs apart too..."  


He stroked her hair. "That is horrible, Maria. I hate that you had to go through that."  


Maria made a noise from the back of her throat, clutching Jasper's now damp shirt.  


He held her for a few hours, promising to himself he'd do whatever he had to in order to keep her safe. Even if it meant he had to leave her forever.  


*  


He teared up at the memory. It was a particularly painful one - the thing he hated most in the world was _Maria being unhappy_. He clenched his jaw, biting down on his lip to stop himself from crying again. He ran his hand through his hair, swearing under his breath. He wouldn't have sworn at all was it not for Maria - it was a habit he picked up from her.  


*  


Out of all the people Jasper had met, Maria had the most foul mouth. A minor inconvenience would set her off - he once heard her call a particularly unfortunate tree a 'motherfucking son of a whore, a fried dick sandwich with a side of schlongs, the love child of chlamydia and syphilis, that piece of crap fucking cock socket'.  


In her defense, it was in her path.  


Try as he might, he couldn't stop himself from laughing, earning a glare from his friend. It was threatening at first, then it shook and just as suddenly as she swore earlier, she was practically on the floor laughing with him.

"Riri," He said, using a nickname he knew she detested, "Vampires are supposed to have amazing vision."  


"I made a deal with the devil and traded it for my cursing skills," she fired back, still laughing.  


"That deal with the devil is making my ears bleed!"  


"Right, I shouldn't have sworn in the presence of this f.ucking southern belle. Sorry, m'lady," she said, messing up his hair and rolling her eyes.  


Jasper was still laughing as he interlaced their fingers and placed a small kiss on her forehead. "You are forgiven," He said, pouting slightly.  


Maria laughed, resting her head against his shoulder and smiling as he stroked her hair.

"I love it when you do that."  


"I love doing this."  


Maria lifted her head, smiling at him before pulling his down and closing the gap between them, pressing her lips against his. It wasn't an electric first kiss - nor was it uncomfortable. There were no butterflies or explosions in their stomachs. It just felt right. It felt like something that happened at the perfect moment. It was a perfect kiss.  


*

"Is someone being a sentimental fool?"  


Jasper gasped, whipping his head around.  


"I - I'm seeing things, right?"  


"That is the purpose of eyes," She grinned, taking a step closer to him. "Hello, Jasper."  


"Maria..."  


She laughed, pulling him into a hug as she sat next to him, kicking his feet as they looked over the cliff. "I missed you too, Jasper."  



End file.
